4 free-agent CBs to target after disappointing Week 1 display
By Dean Jones
Ross Cockrell
Ross Cockrell was not brought back to the Carolina Panthers despite showing promise in 2019. But after what we saw in their Week 1 game against the Las Vegas Raiders, they might want to rethink their decision.
This would be a drastic measure just one game into the season. But given the elite passing attacks on the schedule in the coming months, either significant improvements need to be made with this current group or additional reinforcements need to be found on the cheap.
Cockrell knows the environment and would be a familiar face to a locker room that suffered a wealth of departures this offseason. He only gave up 37 receptions from 67 targets last time out and it was something of a surprise that he didn’t get the chance to at least fight for his place at training camp.
The former Duke Blue Devil was poised to make a return to the New York Giants in free agency before a deal fell through at the last minute. Cockrell is a low-risk, high reward pickup for a cornerback unit that saw their flaws exposed over intermediate routes and also deep on occasions thanks to the blazing speed of Henry Ruggs.
It would not be the worst idea in the world. But whether the organization wants to go back on their original decision to part ways with the player is another matter entirely.